Boden OS7 vs Music Man Majesty 7

[vindejazzarock]

I'm in the market for a new 7 string and have narrowed it down to either a Strandberg Boden OS CL7 or a Music Man John Petrucci Majesty. Both are pretty similarly priced, so that's a pretty negligible argument. I'm more interested in playability and uniqueness. I'm no where near a music store that has the majesty's in stock. So, trying one out is next to impossible.
I have 2 friends that have Bodens, ones an 8 string the others a 7. They both have the endure neck and are pretty darn comfy, if needing a bit of an adjustment on my part.
Have any of you had experience with both? What are your concerns, beefs, or input you can provide?

 

[Soya]

Ironically I just sold my Boden OS7 for a majesty 7. I thought the strandberg was really nice, but the majesty is better in pretty much every way. I liked the endurneck but was a bit too thick for me. Majesty plays so so easy, a bit more comfortable I'd say because of the contoured body. My main problem with my strandberg was that the quality was very disappointing, whereas the quality of the music man is near perfect. Add in all the different voicing options of the majesty, I'd say go with that as long as you like the shape.

 

[gabsonuro]

majesty is the better guitar, period.

 

[rewihendrix]

The value of the boden is in the design. If you like the design, get it. Since you mentioned you like the uniqueness, it's probably what you want.

It won't match other guitars in its price bracket for quality and attention to detail. So if you're fussy about that kind of thing, that's the trade off.

 

[marcwormjim]

OP:

Price isn't "negligible"; otherwise you'd be buying both - Which is what I recommend: Buy both used, but the cheaper/available one first. Otherwise, you're going to be stuck babying a high-end guitar that you hope is retaining its hype-value. Don't get me wrong: Both are great instruments, but they're very much "in"; and I anticipate another wave of owners flipping them toward buying the next ss.org-anointed shred machine. Multiple listings equate to competitive pricing in your favor - it'll just be a matter of patience.

However, treating yourself sooner rather than later is what disposable income is all about, no?

 

[GuitarBizarre]

OP:

Price isn't "negligible"; otherwise you'd be buying both - Which is what I recommend: Buy both used, but the cheaper/available one first. Otherwise, you're going to be stuck babying a high-end guitar that you hope is retaining its hype-value. Don't get me wrong: Both are great instruments, but they're very much "in"; and I anticipate another wave of owners flipping them toward buying the next ss.org-anointed shred machine. Multiple listings equate to competitive pricing in your favor - it'll just be a matter of patience.

However, treating yourself sooner rather than later is what disposable income is all about, no?

He didn't say the price was negligible, he said the price DIFFERENCE was negligible, so he's not considering anything but the actual quality and features to be the things that are going to make or break his decision.

 

[decreebass]

Having played both and owned a Maj for about 6 months when they first started shipping, my vote is for the Maj. And I hate to be the reason Sterling Ball gets one more dime, so you know I mean what I say.

 

[Genome]

And I hate to be the reason Sterling Ball gets one more dime, so you know I mean what I say.

Have I missed something here?

 

[decreebass]

Have I missed something here?

Let's just say his online presence leaves something to be desired. The EBMM forums are becoming increasingly well-known for being more of an advertisement rather than an open community where it's okay to be both flattering AND critical. He threw a fit when the Majesty was released and initial thoughts about the aesthetics were mixed. You better toe the party line over there...

I had FIVE of the new guitars coming out this year pre-ordered, but then he went and shot his keyboard mouth off and I cancelled them all; a St. Vincent, a Valentine, a JP16 7, and both the SBMM JP157 and Majesty. But not anymore.

I love my current EBMMs, but I'm not excited about giving that guy more money. YMMV. You may find him to be the nicest guy in the world. I'm sure he's got a wonderful heart and friends and family that love him, but that doesn't change how I feel about how he presents himself online; always snarky, self-serving, and condescending. NEVER is he helpful, compassionate, understanding, or even polite. At best his posts might be considered 'not rude,' as if he only jumps in to put the final nail in the coffin of ideas that his hell hounds (mods) have put the kibosh on. But that's just my experience. When I saw him at NAMM in 2015, he seemed to be a pretty chill dude (for a guy who's obviously high-strung as f***).

As the latest example, all the marketing for the JP16 was off. The OFFICIAL PRODUCT PAGE photos showed locking tuners and piezo controls, but then we come to find out it has neither, and that they just threw some random pics of a prototype and whatever control cavity plate they had lying around. Yet all throughout this discussion, Big Poppa (Sterling Ball) did NOTHING to clarify. Yet, earlier in the discussion, the second someone mentioned that the new JP16 was very much a throwback to JP's Ibanez days, he immediately came on saying we were wrong and we'd see if we laid the guitars on top of each other. So he's more than happy to snarkily (and unnecessarily, I might add) defend his ego against perceived threats, but not to clear up misinformation regarding the advertising on his website? Truth is, no one even slightly hinted that it looked ANYTHING like an Ibanez. In another instance he banned me for questioning the legitimacy of the "BFR" logo/designation (I mean, how "reserve" can a guitar be if every one that leaves the factory carries the logo?) but that's a whole other discussion (discussed several times on here, in fact).

Anyway, I'll digress. No, you didn't miss anything, it's my own personal hang-ups. I'm not trying to get anyone on my side to dislike the fellow, but I also don't wanna contribute to his company anymore, at least until I cool down again. Because, obviously, they're great guitars. MILES above that Korean Boden OS.

 

[marcwormjim]

Hard to believe there are jerks in this industry.